UpSideDown
by Lizzy-004
Summary: Catherine and Warrick finally admit that they have feelings for each other. They’re gonna try to make it work… Oh, and can someone tell me why this romance is called 'yobling' ?
1. Chapter 1

**This is my first fic, so I would like to know your opinion. English isn't my normal language, please keep that in mind. All the characters in this fic are property of CBS and the wonderful writers of CSI, I'm just borrowing them. Enjoy, and let me know what you think.. **

**Alyssa **

_Up-side-down_**  
**  
Warrick was staring at her for a while now. But he didn't care cause no one could see him anyway.

They didn't work on the same case this time, but her case was very difficult and she had told him all about it, hoping that he could help her out.

She was about to close it now and he wanna to see how she discovered the suspect.

That's why he stood there, behind the glass. She didn't know he stood there and she couldn't see him either.

He likes to stare at her. And watch her interrogate the suspects…

She was done, the suspect gave up. Warrick had to get out of this room. She could walk out the other room any moment now and would see him if he'd stay there.

He walks out, into the hallway and bumps into Nick.

"Hey man. Well done on that restaurant case. How about a drink? I'm buying." Says Nick.

"Yeah, that would be great. See you in the locker room in a couple minutes?" Says Warrick.

"Okay, and ask Catherine to come too," says Nick and he gestures at the interrogation room. "She looks like she could really use a drink." And he takes off.

Warrick waits on a bench in the hallway for Catherine. He sees the cop in the room handcuff the suspect and as he watches, they come out of the room, leaving Catherine alone. As soon as the two men are around the corner, Warrick stands up and walks over to the interrogation room. He opens the door.

"Hey you." He says.

Catherine looks up. "Hey."

"Are you okay? You look exhausted."

She smiles. He loves it when she smiles.

"I'm on the end of my second shift." She explains.

"Oh, so I guess you don't wanna have a drink with Nick and me?" He says regretfully.

"Well, as long as it stays by one drink, count me in."

"Okay. So… see you in a couple minutes in the locker room?" He says again.

"Give me another five, to pull myself together. Okay?"

"Sure. Later!"

That went well; he thinks when he is outside. This could still become a very interesting evening.

...

"And then I said…" Warrick isn't really listening to Nick's story, but Catherine is having a great time. Warrick smiles on the inside when he sees her like this.

It didn't stay by one drink, but he's sure that she knew that already when he asked her to go. He knows she's gonna end it soon or they'll be sitting here for hours.

And he's right: "Guys, I have to go. Thanks, I had a blast." She says.

"Let me drive you home Cath. You drank too much to drive." He suggests.

"Okay then. Bye Nicky!" She says.

"Let's go." Says Warrick.

When they have driven for a while, he notices that she has fallen asleep. He strikes her cheek.  
You're so beautiful, he thinks.

When they're at Catherine's house he wakes her up by putting a hand on her shoulder and shaking her slightly.

"Come on, Cath. You're home."

She groans. Then she gets out of the car. He walks her to her front door. Funny; he thinks, it's just like a date.

"Thanks for the drive." She says.

"You're welcome." Is he wrong, or is she looking a moment too long at him?

"Goodnight." She says.

"Night." And he walks back to his car. He turns around to see her one more time, but he's too late, she has closed the door already…

...

Warrick gets up and gets dressed. After 'breakfast' he goes to the lab. He wants to speak to Catherine but he can't find her anywhere. He walks into Grissom's office.

"Do you know where Catherine is?" He asks.

"She took the day off. She said she was very tired from her last case."

"That's not like her, to take the day off."

Grissom shrugs. Warrick goes to work. He has to go to a crime scene. A teenager found dead on a basketball field. He hates that kind of cases.

He's not in a very good mood when he gets home. But when he presses the button of his answering machine and he hears the voice of Catherine, he forgets about the case immediately.

"Hey Warrick. I had fun yesterday. Wanna do it again. How about dinner sometimes? Give me a call."

Warrick froze for a moment. Did she just ask him out? He dials her number.

"Hey Cath. How are ya?"

"Hey! I'm fine, thanks."

"Love to have dinner. Tomorrow's fine?"

"Great. How about that new place at the Strip?"

"Sure. But, Catherine, why weren't you at work today?"

"Uh… I took just a day off. Can you pick me up at six?"

"Okay. See you then." And Warrick hangs up.

She did a bit strange. It's really not like Catherine to stay home, not go to work. And she was avoiding his question. But at least they're going out. Or is this not a date? Well, he'll know that tomorrow.

...

Warrick is glad it's Saturday. He never works on Saturdays. But if he did, with this 'date' tonight, he probably couldn't concentrate anyway. He's really nervous, but all ready to go. He sprays some more aftershave and leaves his house. In the car he puts in the most romantic CD he has. He is at Catherine's house. He checks his breath and knocks on her door. Lindsey opens it.

"Hey Lindsey. Can you call your mother for me?"

"Mom, Warrick's here!" Lindsey shouts.

"Okay honey." Catherine gets a wink from her daughter. Warrick sees it and smiles.

They get into the car and Warrick drives away after he waved at Lindsey. They talk like friends, but Warrick can feel the tension in the car. When they arrive, Catherine gets ready to leave the car.

"Wait!" Says Warrick. He gets out and walks around the car. He opens the door for Catherine.

"Well, thanks!" She says, and gives him a smile. Warrick looks at her with an 'it's your turn'-look.

Fortunately, she gets the hint. She puts her arm in his and they walk to the restaurant.

Three hours later they come out of the restaurant; hand in hand. Warrick's again a gentleman and opens the passenger door for her. When he sits next to her, he presses the button 'play' on his CD-player. Catherine looks at him and smiles. He feels butterflies inside.

"Did I tell you, you look beautiful tonight?" He says, "…as always, of course!" He adds. Does he see her blushing?

At Catherine's front door she looks at him. "Thanks Warrick, I had a great time." She steps forward and kisses him on the cheek. He smiles. "Me too."

She goes into her house and he walks back to his car.

This was definitely a date; he thinks when he feels his cheek still burning at the place where she kissed him.

...

She smiled the whole Sunday. Of course Lindsey noticed it, so Catherine had told her the 'date' went well.

"Don't you mean perfect?" Lindsey had said. "You had this thing for him for so long and finally you got a chance to make that clear to him. That's really something to be nervous about… and you were!"

Catherine laughs when she thinks back of their conversation. She realizes she has a smart daughter.

"Was it so obvious?" She had asked her.

"Totally!" Was Lindsey's answer.

Catherine is on her way to the lab. She wonders if her colleagues would notice her happiness, and if Warrick is also satisfied with how the date went. She decides to go find him right after she has put her coat and purse in her locker. But it isn't necessary to go look for him because he is already in the locker room.

"Hey!" She says when she walks into the room.

Warrick stands on the other side of the wooden bench, in front of his opened locker. "Hey babe." Was his respond.

Babe? Was it that serious already?

"So… did you have fun Saturday night?" She asks when she opens a locker in an other row.

He shuts his locker and walks over to her, where he leans against the locker next to hers.

"Absolutely. Are you in for a second date?" He asks.

"So you call it a date too, huh?" She's relieved.

"Yeah. Shouldn't I?"

"No, you should." She comes a little closer to him.

"Cath…" She sees him biting his lower lip for a moment.

"Yeah?" She can feel his breath on her face.

"Not here."

"You're right," she steps away. "How does breakfast sound?" She suggests.

"As music to my ears." He says, making her smile.

...

**TBC**


	2. Chapter 2

After work they left together to eat something in a little diner. Quiet enough, so they didn't have to be careful. They didn't want the whole lab to know they were dating before they could get used to it themselves. Although she wouldn't admit it to anyone, Catherine knows exactly what it is because she has felt it for years. The moments of tension between them, the looks, the smiles, her desire to touch him, kiss him… Just be with him is enough.

She can't believe they're sitting here like this. Both aware of what might come.

"Catherine, should we be doing this? I mean, you being my supervisor and all." Warrick asks.

"Well," she tries to look serious, "if it doesn't interfere with our work, there should be no problem."

But she isn't so confident about it herself. She had a busy life already, but now she has to fit in a boyfriend as well. How will she manage?

"Are you sure? You look worried." He says.

"I'm just wondering if I have time for a relationship. I hardly sleep, the babysitter sees my daughter more often than I do and I'm a supervisor. This is more work than I used to do, you know? But don't get me wrong, I'm certain of what we're doing. This is what I want."

"And if you want, we can take it slow, okay?"

Damn, he's sweet.

She sees him looking at her plate, she'd hardly touched it. She blushes; she was too busy looking at him.

"Aren't you hungry?" He asks.

She shakes her head.

"Okay, I'll take you home."

…

Catherine parks her car. She's in a rush because she's really late. Lindsey got sick that night and they had to go to the hospital. Fortunately, it was nothing serious, but it took a while. She dropped Lindsey at her sister's and feels really guilty about that. Her child is sick but she has to work. It's not fair.

She gets inside but she can't find Warrick or Nick. When she checks with the desk she hears that they're at a crime scene. She walks back to her car.

The murder took place in the garden of a really big house. Obviously people with money. When she sees Warrick and Nick looking for evidence in the garden and swimming pool she shouts to them:

"I'm sorry I'm late."

"No big deal, Catherine," Nick says, when she gets closer to them. "But next time, call okay?"

"Totally slipped my mind, but next time I will."

She helps them finding evidence, but after a while Warrick calls her. "Catherine, can I talk to you for a moment?"

"Sure." She walks to him.

Warrick makes sure Nick can't hear him.

"Didn't you just go through these garbage cans?"

"Yeah, I did. Why?"

"I just found a fingerprint beneath the handle and a T-shirt covered with blood spatters in this can. Since the vic was stabbed, there must have came blood spatters on the killer and his clothes. Don't you think it's likely that this could be the killer's shirt?"

She looks at him as if she didn't understand what he was saying.

"Cat…"

"I can't believe I've missed that!" She stammers.

"It's not that big of a deal, we got it now, right?" Warrick realizes he shouldn't have said anything. He should have act like he didn't know she searched there already. She can't handle mistakes of her own. She thinks she can't afford to screw up.

"Right." She says.

…

When they're back at the lab they process the evidence they just found. They have two witnesses who discovered the body. Because there was a hair found on the victim's clothes that wasn't his color, Catherine had to take DNA of both witnesses. Like Grissom always says: 'First witness, first suspect.'

She wants to bring the two cotton swabs with DNA to Mia, so she can compare it to the DNA of the hair she collected. But then she notices that the little brown evidence bag where she put the hair in, is empty. "Oh my god." She shouts.

Warrick comes in. "What's up?"

"The hair I collected from the vic's clothes?"

"Yeah…" He says.

"Well, I didn't collect it, it's not in the bag."

"What?"

"I know!" She says.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go to the morgue. Maybe our vic has his clothes still on." Warrick says.

They hurry to the morgue. Dr. Al Robbins looks up.

"Doc, did you finish our new victim already?" Catherine asks him desperately.

"Yes, I'm just closing him, why?" When Doc Robbins says that, Catherine sees their victim lying on the table in front of him… naked.

"Where are his clothes?" Warrick asks.

"In that bag over there. You can have it, I'm done with it."

"Thanks doc." She sighs.

As she and Warrick leave the morgue he says: "I wouldn't count on finding that hair. And if you will, you probably can't use it anymore."

"I know," she says.

When they're back at the lab, she pulls the clothes out of the bag. She looks at them carefully, a little at a time. After a while, she still hasn't found the hair. Warrick is still standing next to her.

"I messed up." She says and turns to Warrick. "I…" She starts to cry.

"Shh, it's okay." He puts an arm around her shoulders.

"I have to document this, you know? I lost evidence. I don't know what to say." Catherine sobs.

"Catherine, everybody makes mistakes."

"Yeah, but I shouldn't."

"Why, cause you're a supervisor? Don't be so hard on yourself." He says.

"It's just too much for me." She whispers. "I can't take it anymore."

He hugs her, and she turns in. She feels very safe in his arms.

"You know, Lindsey is with my sister tonight and she's gonna bring her to school. Wanna go to my place after shift?" She asks when she calmed down a little bit.

"You're sure about that?" He says, not wanting her to do something she might regret later.  
She nods.

"And what do you have in mind, holding a slumber party?"

She smiles to him, but still with teary eyes. "Maybe."

"Is that a promise?" He kisses her on her head.

She raises an eyebrow. "Maybe."

…

**TBC**


	3. Chapter 3

Catherine had asked Warrick if he could stay a little longer at the lab than she. She wanted to be earlier in her house so she could clean up the mess she made before she left for work. He said he would leave the lab half an hour after she did. She agreed with that.

But he didn't stick to their agreement. He was at her apartment in 20 minutes.

"Someone couldn't wait." Catherine says, when she opens the door.

"I just missed you. " He says.

She lets him in and shuts the door behind him.

"Do you wanna see my house?" She asks.

He looks around. "Nice." He teases.

She rolls her eyes and laughs. "I mean, shall I show you round?"

"Maybe some other time." He looks at her. "Come here." He says and pulls her to him.

When she stands close he strikes her cheek. It's just like that time in his car, when he drove her home. But this time she is awake and he is allowed to do it.

She leans in and kisses him mildly. They both longed for it and now it was there, their first, real kiss and it takes like what seems an eternity. She breaks the kiss gently, and looks up to see how he experienced it, and she sees his eyes full of desire. That pleases her and she smiles. She kisses him again, passionately. Then she suddenly steps back, with the intention that he would long for her, just to tease him. Like nothing happened, she walks to her kitchen.

"Can I get you something to drink?" She asks.

He's obviously confused, and she enjoys it.

"No thanks." He comes after her. When she's making tea for herself, he suddenly stands behind her. She feels him wrapping his arms around her waist and resting his head upon her shoulder.

There's a shiver going down her spine, and she straightens her back, not wanting him to stop.

"On second thought, tea would be nice." He says.

She frowns, "you drink tea?"

"Occasionally, yes."

"Well well well, learn something new about you everyday, don't I?" She says.

Still standing behind her, he pushes her hair aside and kisses her neck soft and gently. She shivers and closes her eyes. Then he stops and she turns around. Looks him right in the eye before she closes hers again, while kissing him.

With the tea left on the kitchen sink, completely forgotten, they head over to her bedroom, meanwhile busy kissing and taking each others clothes off. He lifts her and puts her gently on top of her bed. While pushing her hair out of her face, he realizes how lucky he is.

…

When Warrick wakes up, he doesn't immediately know where he is. Then he remembers he's at Catherine's house, but when he looks next to him, there's no Catherine. He looks at her alarm clock, it's kinda late. Where could she be in the middle of the night?

He stands up and goes look for her. He finds her in the living room. The whole room is dark. Catherine's sitting on the couch, staring out of the window. He walks over to her and sits next to her on the couch.

"Baby, what's the matter?"

She doesn't respond. He grabs her hand. "Cath?"

When she turns her head to look at him, he sees she is crying. He wipes away her tears with his thumb and then holds her head in both hands. "Baby, talk to me."

She breaks down in tears and buries her face in his chest. He holds her. She cries and cries like she never cried before. They just sit there, and when the minutes pass by, he feels more and more sorry for her.

After a while she stops crying little by little.

"You wanna tell me what's wrong?" He feels desperate and hurt, because the woman he loves is in so much pain on the inside. Eventually she starts talking.

"Remember the day after we went out with Nick, and I didn't come to work?" She sobs.

"Yeah…" He encourages her.

"Well, I heard that day that my mother was seriously ill. She called me just when I was about to leave and I was devastated. I wanted to be with her that day."

"I totally understand that. But I asked Grissom that day and I got the impression that he didn't know about it. Why didn't you tell the truth to him? I'm sure he would understand it too."

She shrugs, "I don't know. I guess I didn't want him to see me as a vulnerable person. I don't want to look weak."

"And what happened the other day with that evidence you lost and stuff, did that have something to do with it as well?"

She sighs and closes her eyes, but then she nods. "I think so."

"Sweety, I'm so sorry." He says, and he means it.

"I just couldn't sleep tonight. I kept thinking about her." She sighs again.

"I understand, I really do." He says.

They sit for a little longer, he is still holding her. After a while he asks: "Are you coming to bed?"

She nods.

He guides her to the bedroom and soon they're lying both warm under the sheets. She has her back to him so he moves over and lies close behind her, her back against his chest. He folds his arms around her, and then she slowly rests her head on his arm.

"I love you." He whispers in her ear.

…

When Catherine wakes up, the first she thinks about is Warrick. He was so sweet that night. She turns her head to see if he's still asleep. She finds him lying on one side, his head rests on his hand, elbow on his pillow. He is looking at her.

She clears her throat. "Hey."

"Good morning Sleeping Beauty."

"How long are you awake?" She asks.

"Dunno." He says.

"And for how long have you been staring at me?"

He answers that by leaning in and giving her a long and intense kiss.

She smiles. "Well, that's really something."

"How about breakfast?" He suggests.

"Yeah, I'm hungry." She says, hoping that he gets the hint.

"I'll make you some eggs. How'd you like 'em?"

"Fried with bacon, if it's not too much trouble." She says, looking hopefully.

"It's never too much trouble if you use those puppy dog eyes!" He says, kissing her. "What if you hit the shower, then I'll make you everything you want."

"In that case, how about orange jus?"

"Sure." He nods. "Do I need to start writing it down?" He teases.

She smiles.

"Anything else?" He asks.

"Yeah… Warrick?" She makes sure she has his full attention, and that he looks at her.

"I love you too!" She says then, giving him a quick kiss. Then she walks over to the bathroom.

…

**TBC**


	4. Chapter 4

When she comes out of the shower she sees him standing in her kitchen. He's busy with a lot of things; she smells eggs, coffee and pancakes. She stands in the doorway for a little while, looking at him. She is suddenly aware of how crazy she is about him. She realizes it only now, after so many years. She always knew it in some way, but now she sees him in her kitchen, she's convinced they are meant to be together.

Catherine walks over to him. When she stands behind him, she puts her arms around his waist and chest and hugs him.

"Smells good." She says to his back, and she doesn't mean only the food.

He turns around. "So do you." He says, giving her a kiss.

She steals a sandwich from him and she walks over to her kitchen bar. "So, you think we need to tell Grissom about us?" She asks when she sits down.

"Us?" He says.

"Yeah, you know, that we're going steady." She blushes. It's the very first time either one of them pronounces whatever it is they're having. It feels good to say it, though.

"I don't know, you think we have to?" He asks her.

"Well. I'm so used to keep Grissom posted about everything. He always had my back. He covered for me, every time I screwed up. That's the reason I almost forget that I'm the supervisor now, and I have to deal with stuff myself."

He sits next to her. "You don't like it?"

"No! I like it! But it's... different. I'm more on my own now, I have more responsibilities." She says.

He says nothing, he just looks at her. Why doesn't he say anything? He has to respond.

"Warrick, what is it?" She asks.

"I have a relationship with my boss." He says confused like he realizes it for the first time now.

"That's against the law, ya know?"

"Okay, so I guess we do have to tell Gri..."

"Not Grissom Cath! He isn't your superior anymore! We have to tell Ecklie."

"Uh, yeah... I guess.." She stammers.

"What do you think will happen?" He asks.

"I think we're coming with this early enough. Our work didn't suffer from it. And we'll make sure that won't happen either. Then he can't suspend us or anything. The worst thing that could happen is you being transferred to Grissom's team."

"Ya think? I would hate that. Not only I'll miss you, but I won't be able to work together with Nick anymore." He says.

"I know. Maybe Ecklie will trust us if we say that we'll try our hardest to keep our work and personal lives completely separated."

"You think that'll work?" He asks concerned.

"I hope so sweety." She says. It looks like she is comforting him. Strange, cause she feels like she is the one who isn't truly convinced by this plan.

Because they would tell Ecklie, but didn't want the rest of the lab to know, they went to work each in their own car. And, being in Catherine's house, she would leave later than him.

When Warrick arrives at the lab, he goes straight to the locker room. He puts his jacket away and grabs his gun which he put in his holster on his belt. He clicks his ID card also on his belt. He slams his locker and walks to the break room. He just needs a cop of coffee before he can start. When he walks down the hallway a door opens on his left and someone pulls him in the room. Before he knows it, he's standing with his back against the wall and Catherine in front of him. She's making sure that there's nowhere for him to turn. She holds him tight against the wall.

"What do you think you're doing?" Warrick says.

"What do you mean?" She responds.

"Well, we agreed that you would go to the lab later, so other people wouldn't notice that we're..." He doesn't finish his sentence.

Her grip on him slacks. "Why do you hesitate Warrick?" She's obviously shocked.

"I'm not completely sure what we're having." He says.

"Just say what you think will suit us best."

"...in a relationship." He finishes his sentence.

"Here, now we both said it." She says with a smile. Her grip on him tightens again. When she keeps looking at him, with a mischievous look in her eyes, she runs her hand over his arm to his chest and towards his pants. He takes a breath and opens his mouth to say something, but then changes his mind and closes it again.

She feels his belt. "So, you have your gun and ID with you... good. And I'm sure you're going to the break room now for such a disgusting cop of coffee that even Grissom's bugs would faint if they'd smelled it."

"What are you doing, checking up on me?" He says.

"This is called an investigation. You think you should know that!" She teases. "Well, go back to work."

When she steps backwards he rubs his arms. "Ya know, you have to make up for this!"  
She raises an eyebrow. "Do I?"

"Yes, you do. So let's say, after shift, my place? I'll cook, but you have to bring a movie!"

"Sure, love to." She kisses him. "You know, the reason I pulled you in here is that I wanted to say that Nick closed the case..."

"Oh, good boy."

"...and..." she continues, "...now it's a good time to begin to work on separated cases. I thought we could tell Ecklie after our shift and till then we don't work together. We have to prove him that we can. So you and Nick are getting a case from me later and I'll take the one which comes in after that. I can catch up on my paperwork in the meantime."

"Sounds good to me. But does that mean I'm not gonna see ya all night?"

"You'll manage. You're a tough guy."

"But I'll miss you." He kisses her. "And I'll miss this."

She runs her tongue over her lips. "Guess you just have to wait." She smiles and then she walks out of the room.

He waits a minute and then he walks out as well, continuing his walk to the break room. He pushes the door open and sees Nick sitting there. "Hey man, what's up?" He says.

"Hey. Did you hear I closed the case?" Nick says, obviously proud of himself.

"Yeah, I just heard it. So, who did it?" He asks.

"It was the daughter. Can you imagine? A spoiled 17 year old killed her old man." Nick says with a sigh.

"Terrible." Warrick nods, making coffee for himself. With the cup in his hand he plumps down on a chair at the opposite of Nick. He takes a sip. What is Catherine talking about? The coffee tastes  
fine.

"Hey uh, Warrick? You've got some lipstick on your neck." Nick says, giggling.

Warrick looks up. "Where?"

Nick points to a spot on his own neck.

Warrick wipes it away. "I overslept. So I hadn't got a chance to shower."

"So, it's from yesterday, huh?" Nick smiles.

"Uh, yeah, you can say that."

"Who were you with, someone I know?" Nick asks.

But at that moment Catherine comes in with a piece of paper in her hand. "Guys, 419 in the parking lot of the Rampart. Go check it out, okay?"

When both men nod she walks away.

Warrick watches her go.

"Hey Rick, are you checking out her ass now?" Nick looks at Warrick.

"Oh, shut up Nick!" He says.

Nick laughs. "Come on, let's go to the car. I'll drive."

…

A few hours later that night, Warrick walks down the hallway again. A door opens on his left and for the second time that night, he finds himself between Catherine and the wall.

"You're not gonna make a habit out of this, are ya?" He asks to a blushing Catherine.

"I said you had to wait, but I couldn't. I'm sorry." She says, looking guilty.

"And you think this is a good way to meet each other?"

"Actually, no. After we've told Ecklie about it, this may never happen again." She says.

"But for now?" He asks.

"For now it's okay..." She straightens her back and kisses him, long and full of passion. He wraps his arms around her. They are both absorbed in the kiss. He feels Catherine's hand on his face and the other one in his neck, and right after that he hears that someone opens the door. They both look up, totally shocked. Nick's standing in the doorway, his yaw drops...

…

**TBC**


	5. Chapter 5

"Nick! What... you..." Catherine stammers.

Nick put one and one together and gets it all. "Didn't shower my ass, Warrick!" Nick says with a smile. "You made out with Catherine just before you came into the break room, didn't you?"

"If you mean it was her lipstick, it was. And the rest is non of your business." Warrick says.

"Please Nicky, keep it quiet. We're going to tell Ecklie today, but don't let anyone else know!" Catherine almost begs.

"Your secret is save with me." Nick laughs, "I'll leave you two alone, then you can go back to where you were." And he shuts the door. They hear him walk away, laughing about what he ran into.

Catherine rests her head against Warrick's chest and sighs. "That wasn't supposed to happen."

"It's not that bad..." He says.

"Yes, it is! Cause now we really do have to tell Ecklie!" She says.

"Why, you weren't going to do that?"

"Well, I thought, we could always postpone it if we don't feel like telling it. Because I'm actually pretty scared of the consequences. Aren't you?" She says.

"Sweety, nothing can happen, really."

"But what if he split us up? What if you have to go back to Grissom's team?" She says.

"That won't happen, I promise." He kisses her on her head.

…

There wasn't a case for her all night, and because she couldn't keep Warrick off his work, she just stuck to her paperwork. After a couple of hours someone knocks on the door. Thinking it's Warrick, she smiles when she says, "Come in!"

The door opens and it isn't Warrick, but Nick, standing in the doorway. He's holding another pile of files and more paper.

"What's that?" Catherine asks.

"Old cases which are solved and closed." Nick says.

"You wanna bury me in paperwork?"

"Actually I'm kinda late. These have been lying around for quite a while now and I figured, you might need them." He explains.

"And you think now's the right time because…" She provokes him.

"Okay, I also wanted to congratulate you." He admits.

"You're so honest Nicky." She says, rolling her eyes.

He sits down. "So, tell me."

She raises both eyebrows. "Tell what?"

"You know… for how long have you been together now?"

"Almost three weeks."

"Does anyone besides me knows it?" He asks.

"Why am I discussing this with you?" She says.

"Because… I just show some interest."

"No, we haven't told anyone else. Why?" She says.

"Cause I'm dying to tell Sara." Nick says.

"You wouldn't!" Her mouth falls open. "No Nick, you said you'd keep it quiet!"

"Just kidding." He laughs. "When are you gonna tell the rest anyway?"

"I don't know. It wasn't even the plan that you would know it."

"But you're gonna tell Ecklie huh?"

She nods.

"Well, good luck with that. Tell me how it went. I'm gonna look for your boyfriend now." He teases.

"You do that." Giving him a bossy look. She goes back to work. It's just a few more hours. She notices she's a little nervous. Well, first this. Cause this paperwork needs to get done anyway.

…

Catherine opens the door and walks out of Ecklie's office. "Thanks Conrad." She says to him.

"Yeah, thanks Ecklie!" Warrick follows Catherine. After he closed the door, he turns around.

Catherine holds her hands out for him, but he doesn't take them. In stead of that, he puts one step forward and lifts her up.

"Yessss!" She yells, holding on to his shoulders. "We did it!"

He puts her down. "And you, miss Willows, you were very convincing."

She laughs. "That's because you give me inspiration."

He smiles and kisses her.

"I love you." She says.

He takes her hand and they walk down the hallway.

"So…" He says. "No shared cases anymore, but I stay at the nightshift."

"And I stay your supervisor. But… all my evaluations of you have to be seen and signed by Ecklie." She says.

"Isn't that bad, right?" He says.

"Not bad at all." She stops and they kiss again.

Now it doesn't matter if someone sees it. Although, it is in the middle of the hall. Catherine notices it and says, "Wanna celebrate it?"

…

**TBC**


	6. Chapter 6

A week passes by and everything between them is going great. They are going out a lot, have sleepovers and this all doesn't infect their work. Catherine is proud of herself that she's mature enough to have this kind of thing. Although she is proud, she thinks it's hard as well. They're still on the same team, but they don't really work together anymore. It feels like she has lost her best buddy in this lab.

On the other hand she has found a feeling that makes the other problem look so small, almost not worth mentioning. This new emotion is so intense, so inspiring, so the opposite of loneliness. It's like she has never felt it before. Not like this.

She had loved Eddie, her ex-husband. She has a child from him. But after all this time, it's like she realizes she always knew that it couldn't work out between them. She doesn't know why, but it had never felt perfect with him. But if she regrets having Lindsey? No. It's the best thing that ever happened to her. She wouldn't miss the experience of being a mother for the world. Plus, she loves her daughter more than anything.

The best thing that ever happened to her, that's for sure, bur this thing she's in with Warrick is a close second.

Yes, she has had a few men in her life. One was for a couple of weeks, they were dating. He was a lot younger than her and made her forget about her own age. But then she caught him with a younger girl. She has never felt so old as that night when she walked in on them.

Then there was this guy she met in a bar. There was something exciting about him. Something that made her feel wild. But boy, was that a mistake to make out with him at her car. When he turned up to be a suspect in her case, she was deeply in trouble. Grissom was pissed at her. She got that. But, actually, he had all the right to be. He was probably really disappointed in her. It's actually not like her, to just kiss a stranger she met the same night.

She remembers in the beginning, when she just came to the lab, she had a little crush on Grissom.

Yeah, Gil Grissom. He was there for her. She'd never understood the way he thought or what he felt, but all that mattered back then was that he cared for her. This crush disappeared very quickly when Warrick came into the picture. She realized she couldn't have Grissom and she wasn't all that upset about it. It seemed like Warrick had so much more to offer. But then these feelings didn't seem mutual, and when time passed, she had needs. She was looking for love. A man who could satisfy this feeling and she maybe could have a family with.

And there was Eddie. Except for Lindsey, it was one big mistake. He took her money and her pride and, though she'd never admit in, he wasn't that good of a father.  
After all of those 'relationships' she's been in, the feelings for Warrick have returned and are stronger than ever before. She's for the first time in her life one-hundred percent convinced about this, and it might last…

…

Catherine and Warrick are lying in his bed. He's stroking her hair. She has her hand on his chest and draws little circles and harts.

"I could lie like this forever." She says.

He moans. "Me too."

"Then why wouldn't we?" She says mysterious.

"Don't you have to bring Lindsey to school?" He asks.

On a chair next to the bed are her pager, her gun and her cell-phone. They went straight to Warrick's house after shift that night. She managed to put the three important things on the chair before he pulled her on the bed and started to take her clothes off. She reaches for her cell and dials her home-number.

"What are you doing?" Warrick asks.

But Catherine places a finger on her lips. "Hello?" Catherine hears, when someone picks up.

"Hey Lindsey, honey. It's mom. Can I talk to Amber for a minute?"

Warrick moves over to Catherine and kisses her in her neck. Catherine tries to push him away, but she only has one hand available.

"Warrick, stop it!" She whispers in a serious tone. Warrick keeps going on with what he was doing.

"Hey Amber. How did last night go?" Catherine says in the phone. "Ahuh, yeah sure. Hey, listen; I need to cover for someone from days. You think you can bring Lindsey to school?"

On that moment, Warrick puts his tongue out of his mouth and licks a spot on her neck.

Catherine giggles. "What? No, sorry Amber, just read something funny. Okay then. Thanks, and I'll see you tonight." She hangs up and then looks at Warrick. She tries to look mad. "Jerk! What would she think?" She says.

"Why do you care what she thinks? It's your babysitter." He says.

"Don't you have any manners?" She says.

He kisses her in her neck on the same spot. "I did find your weak spot."

She can't help it and laughs. "I hate you." She says.

"No…" he kisses her in her neck again. "…you adore me…" he kisses her on her forehead. "…think I'm sweet…" now on her lips "…actually, you just love me."

She pulls him on top of her. "No, I really hate you."

They kiss. She has her hands on his back and runs them very slowly downwards. Just at that moment she hears her cell-phone ringing. She doesn't stop.

"Don't you have to answer that?" Warrick says.

She shakes her head no.

"Hey, maybe you really do need to cover for someone." He says.

She shrugs. Then she sees out of the corner of her eye that Warrick's hand is reaching for her cell-phone, which has fallen on the ground, but his lips remain on hers. He holds her cell-phone and acts like he's about to answer it. She pushes him off of her and tries to get the phone, but he doesn't let her. "Warrick!" She rolls over and climbs on him. She puts his hands above his head and holds them there.

"Oh, you're so strong." He teases.

"Give me that." She grabs her cell-phone. "Willows." She listens to what someone's saying. "What? You're sure?" She looks at Warrick, frightened. "I'll be right there." She hangs up and gets dressed.  
The sudden rush worries Warrick. "What's wrong Cath?"

"It's my mother…"Is all she can say.

"You want me to go with you?" He asks.

"No. You're sweet, you know that?" She gives him a single kiss. "But it was my sister who called. My mother's still alive, but we need to say goodbye to her. I've got to pick up Lindsey."

"Will you call me?" He asks.

"I'll see… If not, I'll talk to you at work."

She leaves, leaving Warrick behind with a helpless feeling.

…

Warrick got a phone-call from Catherine that day. She told him that her mother died that afternoon. She didn't say much about it. Just that her sister with her husband, and Lindsey and she sat there, so her mother wouldn't die alone.

When Warrick's sitting in the AV lab that night he feels a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, how's your case doing?" Catherine says.

"What are you doing here?" Warrick asks.

"What do you mean? I work here" She says, not-understanding.

"You should be home, with Lindsey."

"I can work." She says, not really convincing.

He looks at her, concerned.

"Really, I'm okay." She says.

"Cath, your mother just died. I don't believe that you're okay, or that you just can go to work like nothing happened."

"I'm okay enough to do my job, I assure you."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah! Do you know where I can find Nick?" She says, to change the subject and to get out of there.

"He took off to DNA. Mia had something interesting." He says.

She walks out of the AV lab. Warrick watches her leave, feeling uncertain whether she's really okay, or that she's just pretending to be.

…

Later that night, Warrick passes Grissom's office. Much to his surprise, the office isn't empty. He knocks and then opens the door.

"What are you doing here?" Warrick asks.

"I work here." Grissom responds.

Warrick sighs. It seems like that question exhorts this answer. "I mean, you work days. What are you doing here now?"

"Work never stops for me, Warrick." Grissom says wise.

"Right. Hey, can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure, sit down." Grissom says, with a gesture to the chair opposite his desk.

"Did you hear about Catherine's mother?" Warrick asks when he sits down.

"Yes, Catherine called to tell me about it."

"Well, I was wondering if you can cover her shift when the moment's there she can't take it anymore." Warrick says.

"You think that moment will come?"

"I think she needs to go home, to be with her daughter. But she's so stubborn, she doesn't admit she's better of at home."

"You want me to go talk to her?" Grissom suggests.

"You think that'll help?" Warrick says.

"I can always try."

"Thanks Gris." Warrick stands up.

"Sure thing. And Warrick?"

Warrick turns around, his eyebrows raised.

"Congratulations. I heard about it from Ecklie."

"You heard, huh? So, what do you think?"

"Just treat her well." And with that, Grissom closes the door behind Warrick.

…

Gil Grissom's on his way to Trace. David Hodges paged him five minutes ago. Maybe he has some information about the cotton fiber Grissom found on the sole of his victim's shoe.

Personally, Grissom wants to let Hodges wait for a few more minutes. He never really liked the guy. Always kissing asses of his superiors to be liked, and always wanting to impress someone so bad that it's more irritating than impressing.

But, he does his work properly and efficient and although he's not such a sociable person, Grissom can't blame him for that, because it's a lack Grissom has to deal with himself.

When he walks by a room on his left he sees Catherine processing evidence. Maybe this is a good moment to talk to her.

"Hey Cath."

She looks up. "Gil!"

"So, how are you doing?"

"I'm fine, thanks." She says.

"You're sure about that?" He says in disbelief.

She nods.

He sits down. "You know, I can cover your shift if you want. You look awful. You really should go home."

"Gil, I'm working."

"As I said, I can cover." He says.

"I'm okay..."

"You don't look like you're okay."

"…and I have no idea what to do at home."

"Catherine, you just need some rest. And time with your daughter. You two need a lot to process."

She says nothing.

"Don't you miss her, your mother?" Grissom asks.

Catherine turns her back to him, not wanting him to see her cry.

But he feels it. "Cath?"

She looks at him. "I miss her a lot." She says, wiping away her tears. "But, I was never really close to her. I only saw her when she babysat Lindsey sometimes. That's the only reason…" Grissom just lets her talk. "I wish I'd spend more time with her. But, when I was young, she was a working mother. As am I. Oh God, I hope I will not be the same mother for Lindsey as my mother was for me. I don't want to waste the time with my daughter…" Her voice cracks, the tears are falling again.

Grissom just sits there. He's not a very physical man. He comforts someone with words, and giving the opportunity to talk about it.

Catherine dries her cheeks. "I cry so much lately. It's so…" She thinks about it.

"Wet?" Grissom tries to cheer her up.

"…weak." She says eventually.

"Don't worry about it. It doesn't matter." He says.

"Maybe I should go home."

"Do that. That would please Warrick as well."

"You talked to him about me?" She asks curious.

"He came to me, yes." He says.

"What did he say?"

"He told me you were too stubborn to admit that you really need to go home. He tried to talk you into it, but it didn't work, so I offered to give it a try." He explains.

"Worked like a charm, didn't it?" She says with a smirk.

"Of course." He stands up and gives her a compassionate look. "Go home."

…

**TBC**


	7. Chapter 7

While walking through the lab, looking for Warrick to say she's leaving, Catherine puts her coat on.

She's glad she can go home after all, now she can take care of things for her mother, like organizing the funeral. She needs to talk to her sister about that.

She finds Warrick sitting in the break room. He's on the phone with someone, so Catherine waits in the doorway.

"Yeah sweety, I know, I miss you too. Can we get together later?" Catherine hears Warrick say these words, but they don't bother her as much as they should. She thinks it's not such a big of a deal, but then she hears Warrick say something else. "Okay, see you then. I love you." These last three words spoil everything. Catherine suddenly feels cold. She wants to run over to him and hit him but something in her holds her back. Warrick had said these words to her more than once and she felt appreciated at the time. But now it feels worthless, and it's like her whole relationship with Warrick was all fake.

She clears her throat. Warrick turns around to see who stands there and seeing Catherine in the doorway gives him a fright. His eyes are all wide and that says enough for her.

"Who was that, Warrick?" She asks in a low voice.

"Just… a friend."

"You think I'm stupid?" She says, strong enough to hold her tears. She's more mad than sad at the moment. "Give me you phone." She demands.

"Cath…" He looks guilty. Too guilty in her opinion.

"Give me your phone damn it."

"Don't be so immature." Warrick says with a slight smile.

Accepting that he won't give her it to her voluntary, she walks over to him and grabs the thing off the table. She looks at the list with last callers.

"So, who's Tina?" She asks.

When Warrick doesn't respond, she says; "Well, shall I give her a call and ask her?"

He still says nothing. Catherine makes the call.

"Hello?" She hears.

"Hello, is this Tina?" Catherine says in the phone.

"Yes, who's this?"

"How do you know Warrick Brown?" Catherine asks.

"Warrick Brown my husband?" That was it, the fact she was afraid for, the fact that ruined the last few weeks for her, the fact that ruined the rest of her life. She shuts the phone off and drops it.

She tries to look indignant at Warrick but all her eyes show is pain and anger.

"So… when were you going to tell me?" She asks.

"Catherine, it's not what you think. I can explain."

"Where did I hear that before? You are cheating on me AND her, Warrick!"

Warrick sighs and stands up. "You don't understand. I…" He puts a hand on her shoulder but she shakes it off. "No Warrick, I do understand. I can't believe you're married. I can't believe you began a relationship with me while you were married!"

"I'm going to divorce her, but now is just not the right time." He says.

But Catherine thinks that's a lousy explanation. "What, you were addicted to gambling, now you're addicted to women as well? Two for one, or something? Didn't one addiction bring enough problems for you?" She yells.

Warrick slaps her in her face. Catherine grabs her left cheek with one hand and stares at him. "I can't believe you just did that."

"Cath…I'm sorry." Warrick looks just as shocked as she does. "I didn't mean that."

She just looks at him, tears filling her eyes.

"Come on, Cath. You know I love you!"

"If you loved me, you wouldn't hit me." She says, feeling miserable.

"I would never hurt you." He says.

"You just did." All she wants right now is to get out of there. She turns away from him but he grabs her arms and makes her face him.

"I didn't mean for that to happen." He repeats.

"It makes no difference." She says, letting out a sigh and shaking his arms off again. "I'd better go. You should go to your wife." A tear is falling down her cheek. She pushes him aside and walks out of the room. Warrick wants to go after her, but he knows he totally blew it.

…

**TBC**


	8. Chapter 8

She runs away, out of the room, out of the hall, out of this lab. She wants to forget about it as soon as possible and in order to do that she needs to be as far away from him as she can. She gets in her car and starts the engine. While she drives she tries her hardest to forget it, but she sees him slapping her over and over again. She'd never thought that he was the kind of man that would hurt her, or cheat on her for that matter.

They've had such a perfect time together. Before these weeks with Warrick, she had dreamed about is, fantasising about how it could be. But she was always convinced that it wouldn't be more than a dream, a wish… a fantasy.

Maybe it's just men. They always cheat. For weeks they make her feel like she's in heaven. Like she's the only one that matters for them. Of course she's the only one for them, but only at that moment.

And of course the more she's in love with someone, the more it hurts when he lets her fall. And now she fell hard, harder than ever before. She can't do it again. It just hurts too much. And now Warrick did this to her, he kind of proved that really every man is capable of doing something like this. Cause he was the last one she'd expected it from.

…

Two days later.

Warrick knows Catherine is coming back to word today. She took care of things for her mother the last few days, and sold her house. The funeral will be tomorrow.

Warrick hadn't had the guts to call her after what happened. She was so mad, but seriously, who can blame her? If he could just explain it to her. He sure had a good reason, but she may not see it that way. He needs to talk to her. He needs to get her back.

"Hey Nick. Have you seen Catherine?" Warrick says, after running into Nick in the hallway.

"Actually, I have. But she told me not to tell you." Nick says, looking confused.

"You've heard about it?" Warrick says?

"Heard about what?"

"Never mind." Warrick walks away.

"She went that way." Nick shouts, pointing to a hall on Warrick's right.

Warrick thanks him and walks down the hall Nick had pointed at. There she is, walking while reading a piece of paper. Coming closer to her, Warrick sees the coloured print of some DNA results.

He slows down to walk behind her. Apparently, she heard him coming cause she stops walking and stands still, but she doesn't turn around.

"Catherine…" He begins.

"Go away." He hears her saying.

"Come on, Cath."

She turns around quick. "I don't wanna talk to you." She says in his face. "Don't you get that? You hurt me, Warrick."

"Cath, just let me explain…"

"What's left to explain? You have someone else and I have to deal with that." She says with a cracked voice.

"I'm about to divorce her. Can't you just wait?" He knows how stupid this sounds.

"You really think we can go back to where we were?" She sneers, shaking her head. She walks ways but stops again after a couple steps. She turns around and says: "You know, Warrick, I deserve much more than this!"

He looks at her regrettable. "I know. And I hate myself for what I've done to you."

"Join the club." She says before continuing her walk down the hallway.

There he stood, no idea what to say, and completely stunned.

…

**TBC**


	9. Chapter 9

Catherine stares at the loose soil. There's a hole dug in the earth beside a pile of dirt. She steps forward and looks in the hole. She sees the coffin with her mother in it. She takes another step forward and throws a rose on the box. "Goodbye Mom." She whispers.

It's so unreal. She doesn't even cry.

"Mom!" Catherine hears. She frowns. She doesn't want to destroy this last moment and look up.

"Mom!" Again that whispering voice. Is it Lindsey's?

She turns her head. Lindsey, wide-eyed, points at a spot behind the crowd of people. Catherine can't see what her daughter means so she shakes her head to let her know that.

"Warrick!" Lindsey says with her lips, no sound at all.

"What!" She can't believe it, is he here? There's a part of her that felt happy the moment she heard his name. But all the anger from the last few days comes up again as well. And her anger is more present now than the feeling that she misses him… She doesn't want him here. This isn't the right time nor place to talk to him. She doesn't know if she even wants to talk to him.

She hurries in his way, passes all the people that came that day. Until then he hadn't seen her yet. But when she storms through the crowd he notices her. He waves shy.

"What the hell are you doing here?" She asks when she's close enough to him.

"I… I wanted to tell you something…"

"What Warrick, what could possibly be so important that you had to tell me on my mother's funeral?" Now she really can't believe he's here.

"Cath… why don't we have a drink later today to talk about us?" He so knows he's wrong.

"No. No drink. There's no 'us'." He yeah she's angry, she's furious. "You had no right coming here."

Warrick looks at her. He knows she isn't going to change her mind, so he decides to leave.

Catherine watches him go for a minute and then she walks back. She sees Lindsey looking at her and she tries to smile to her but her lips take no convincing shape. She walks to her daughter and hugs her.

"You okay mommy?" Lindsey asks.

"Been better, sweetheart."

Lindsey gives her a compassionate loo and puts her arm around her mother's waist. "It's gonna be okay, mommy. You just need to talk to him."

Catherine kisses Lindsey on her head. "I know honey, I know…"

…

The messages on her answering machine were deleted easily. She could ignore them, and delete them before listening. Then she'd forget about them like a bad dream. Even when there came more and more signs from that damn machine that let her know he was sorry, she just couldn't listen to them.

But the problem now, was that she began to miss him. Really miss him. And she had serious doubts whether she could continue being mad at him. She had thought about it… Should she give him a chance and listen to him?

But there was something else to think about, at the moment. She had found a letter in her letterbox with Warrick's name on the back. Should she open it? She turns it a couple times, then suddenly she holds it in two hands like she's about to tear it apart. But something inside of her holds her back. Having something coming from him in her hands is much more difficult to resist than a digital message on a machine. She really can't help herself and opens it. Her eyes flash from line to line and as she reads, the tears are coming up. Then she notices there's something else in the envelope. She unfolds the papers and reads. The other paper was hand written, but these are typed. She realizes what it is and she can't believe it that he sent her these. It's his divorce papers. He evidently meant it…

She'd never run so fast to the phone as she did now.

…

They're sitting in the same diner as a few weeks ago. When she called, he suggested immediately to get something to eat, to talk things over. Of course he was way too early, but he planned to be there sooner than her. That would make a better impression. He wants her back, that's obvious. Even she knows it.

In the beginning they hardly spoke, besides the "Hello, how are ya?" when she came in. He'd stood up to give her a kiss on the cheek, but all she did was nod at him and then she walked to the other side of the table.

He ordered an extra large meal, so they would sit there long enough to have him explain everything he wanted her to know while eating the meal. After they ordered, there wasn't said anything at all. They only ate. Then he decided to break the silence and say something.

"So, I'm glad you called." He said eventually.

"Me too."

"Really?" He asks.

She nods. "I'm willing to listen to you, if you still want to talk."

"Did you get my letter?"

"Aha." She nods.

"Have you read it?"

"Yes. Why did you send it?"

"I thought you had to know. And if you don't want to talk to me and not even listen to me, this was the way to let you know." He says.

She keeps quiet.

"And Catherine? I'm sorry to burst into your mother's funeral like that. I shouldn't have done that." He says, regretfully.

"No. No, you really shouldn't." She replies, still pissed at him for doing that.

They didn't speak for a couple minutes. Then she said, "Hey Warrick?"

He looks at her, questioningly. She looks him right in the eye. God, she has missed these eyes. She loves his eyes, so honest and caring but more important, sexy and passionate.

"The things you wrote in that letter… You know, those things about us… How you feel about me… Do you mean that?" She asks.

That she still has to ask that! He nods. "Of course."

She bends forward and stretches her arms over the table, reaching for him. He grabs them. She has missed these hands even more. They're so… Warrick. She looks at their hands on the table. They're folded and cherishing each other.

"Cath?"

She raises her eyebrows but does not look up from the pleasurable sight in front of her.

"Cath?"

Now she looks up. "Do you think the letter explained enough, or do you want me to add anything?"

"Well, it would help to hear it out of your own mouth." She says.

"Yeah, okay."

"What did you write about money? I didn't really get that." She says.

"I'll tell you about it. You remember the time I went from casino to casino and I always came out broke?" He says.

"Yes, I remember that. That weren't your best years." She says.

"You're right. Well, a few years back, I didn't gamble as much anymore because it made me realize I'd never win anything."

"Aha." She encourages him.

"But one time, I hit the jackpot and I became an addict again. I wanted more and more."  
She looks serious.

"Fortunately, at that time I was luckier than in the past. I've actually won a couple thousand dollars, and I've never spent that. And last year, I have officially quit the gambling, and put an end to my addiction." He says proud.

"Good for you. What have you done with the money?" She asks curious.

"I put in on a bank account." He says.

"What about Tina?" She asks.

"What about her?"

"Why didn't you mention her when you first got married?"

"You know, it was all so new for me. Actually I got married because the thing, you know, what happened to Nick made me realize how short life is. It was a drive-through wedding. But, after the fact, I was ashamed. I felt I over-reacted about the thing with Nick. This marriage had never been a good idea. That's why I hid it."

"Why didn't you divorce her right away?" She says, not-understanding.

"I actually could have done that, but because I suspected Tina to have an affair with her ex-boyfriend, I wanted her to end our marriage, not me. I just wanted her to feel bad." He looks confused. "That didn't come out right, did it?"

She shrugs.

After a short silence, she says, "Now the most important question to me, Warrick: How could you possibly be with me, when you were married to her?"

"That time in the lab, when we were discussing a case… You said to me that thing about a fantasy, right? It made me think about it, and I realized we've always had this thing, you know? You must have felt it too. From that moment on, I wanted to be with you. I didn't wanna wait till my divorce was through. As I pointed out in my letter, my layer needed a lot to take care of, otherwise, Tina would be going with a lot of my gambling money. But before that was settled, we would be a few months further, and I wanted you at that time." He breaks of.

"So I should be flattered?" She asks, not really sure how she feels about it.

"I know… It sounds cruel and absurd, but it's true." He looks at her. "I'm not asking you to forgive and forget, but could you at least try to understand?"

She smiles. "I'll try."

He squeezes her hand. "It will all work out."

…

**THE END**


End file.
